Chicken & pasta salad w/ pesto
5 servings
Ingredients
| Quantity | Ingredient | |
|---|---|---|
| ½ | pounds | Penne or pasta shells |
| 2 | cups | Diced cooked chicken |
| ½ | cup | Olive oil, preferably extra virgin |
| ¼ | cup | Pine nuts or walnuts |
| 2 | Garlic cloves | |
| 1 | cup | Pesto sauce (recipe follows) |
| 12 | Cherry tomatoes, halved | |
| ½ | teaspoon | Salt |
| 2 | cups | Fresh basil leaves |
| ¾ | cup | Parmesan cheese, grated |
| ¼ | cup | Romano cheese, grated |
Directions
PESTO SAUCE
Prep: 15 minutes Cook: 10 minutes In a large saucepan of boiling salted water, cook the pasta until just tender, about 10 minutes. Drain & rinse under cold water until cool; drain well.
PESTO SAUCE: Place oil, nuts, garlic & salt in a blender or food processor. Process until nuts & garlic are finely chopped. Add basil & process until finely chopped. Stir in Parmesan & Romano cheeses.
In a large serving bowl, combine pasta, chicken & pesto sauce. Toss to coat w/ sauce. Garnish w/ tomatoes. Serve at room temperature or slightly chilled.
Pesto has traditionally been a summer favorite, when garden fresh basil is in season. Now fresh basil, grown hydroponically in greenhouses, is available in many markets all year. Here pesto is combined w/ pasta & chicken for an Italianate salad that's loaded w/ flavor.
Posted 10-11-93 by: ELIZABETH CHRISTIAN on F-Gourmet Nutritional Information per serving: x Calories, x grams Fat, x% Calories from fat, x mg Cholesterol, x mg Sodium, x g Dietary fiber.
MM by QBTOMM and Sylvia Steiger, GEnie THE.STEIGERS, CI$ 71511,2253, GT Cookbook echo moderator at net/node 004/005 From: Sylvia Steiger (Cooking) Submitted By LAWRENCE KELLIE On 01-09-95